What to expect for the "Evolution of Technology":

We have read a lot over the past few months in regards to different predictions of what will come of the world. With Camping, we were told that the world would come to an end on May 21'st, 2011. When that Saturday came and past, as it was expected to, we were simply given a mis-calculation comment and told for the next date of pre determined DOOM! I think we constantly set these same expectations with how technology will evolve in the future. In 1970, Nasa said we would have a 10,000 person space colony on the moon. In the late 1980's film industry we saw Marty McFly take a DMC Delorean to the far away year of 2015, which featured fly cars, and motorized tying shoe laces. I feel that we all to often set a much higher expectation on what to expect for the future. We try to image what is wrong in the world now, and simply say... "well, it will be completely different in the year 20(something)." Will 2012 bring about the end of the world? and if it fails to, will be simply be given a run around to another date years in the future.

"Remember remember the 5th of november"

“Voilà! In view, a humble vaudevillian veteran, cast vicariously as both victim and villain by the vicissitudes of Fate. This visage, no mere veneer of vanity, is a vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished. However, this valorous visitation of a by-gone vexation, stands vivified and has vowed to vanquish these venal and virulent vermin vanguarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition. The only verdict is vengeance; a vendetta, held as a votive, not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous. Verily, this vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose, so let me simply add that it's my very good honor to meet you and you may call me V.”

V, a character from the 2006 DC comics film “V for Vendetta” was a mutilated being, morphed by a chemical explosion who seeked vengeance against those responsible. His body, left deformed from the flames, was masked in black garments, and his face was hidden behind a very emotional mask.

V’s character played by (Hugo Weaving) had an almost juvenile view of the world. He became so focused on pursuing vengeance on the corrupt. That there was no sexual tension between himself and Natalie Portman’s character, Evey. Despite his very violent manners, he came across as seeming innocent. A creature for whom you felt pity on, as a sleighed the wicked. He is somewhat representative of the Beast, in the Disney Film beauty and the beast, the villains of which always seem to be asexual.

Singularity

It is the belief of Ray Kurzweil that by the year 2029, computers will be able to successfully complete a Turing test. A Turing test is defined as: "a test of a machine's ability to exhibit intelligent behavior." The overall idea that computers will be able mimic and process as a human brain is a bit unsettling but at the same time interesting to think about. For me this reminds me of the character Lieutenant Commander DATA from the Star Trek: The Next Generation series of the mid 90's. The goal for DATA's character was to develop more and more human like qualities as the show progressed, with a later arrival at being able to create and replicate human emotion. Of coarse the timeline for the show took place in 2364, the idea that we will reach that point over 330 years ahead of schedule is pretty impressive. It makes you think of how much of this tech we really want ruling our lives. The problem became quite apparent in Will Smith’s iRobot, in which the robots were given human emotion and that led to a world of shit. In today’s world where people will have their perfectly good limbs surgically removed in order to be replaced with robotic prosthetics, it makes you wonder when has it gone to far. I hope I never become so reliant on a machines task and convenience to the point that I render my self-incompatible. I don’t want to see my self as an out dated system requirement on the side of a box.

"The thing about perfection...

... is that it's unknowable. It's impossible, but it's also right in front of us all the time. You wouldn't know that because I didn't when I created you." Kevin Flynn: TRON Legacy 2010

Perfection is an unachievable goal, and for those that cant come to terms with that, it can drive the pursuer mad. That was the case for C.L.U. (Codified Likeness Utility) in the film TRON Legacy. CLU chased after the idea that he could create the perfect system, however with out reaching perfection, CLU could never find happiness. He could never be satisfied with his accomplishments because that was the mind set of his creator when he was cloned.

For me, I have an idea of what i consider perfect but I can understand when I should stop the "drive" towards it. Constantly in my major we are pushed to strive for creating a perfect render, model, or overall project. Which in many ways I feel that we do. However in many cases I have personally as well as seen my piers push something to far and ruin it. You can loose what makes you an individual by striving to be perfect. I like to leave parts of my render in just the raw line work drawing just to show how dramatic of a change took place, while also showing that it is in fact a render, and not a photograph.

In striving for this idea of perfection, we can loose what makes us an individual.

- bowditchsmith